Austin and Cockram Form Alliance to Support Bio/Pharma Capital Projects in North America

CLEVELAND, OHIO October 8, 2020 — The Austin Company (Austin) and Cockram Construction (Cockram), both subsidiaries of Kajima Corporation of Japan, anticipate substantial investment in capital projects for research and manufacturing in the life science sector due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Pairing resources and expertise in delivering world-class projects, Austin and Cockram have allied to bring bio/pharma production back to North America.

Austin continues its long history serving the North American life sciences market through site location, design, engineering, and construction services.  Cockram brings global experience constructing life science research and manufacturing centers in Asia, Australia, and North America.

Austin and Cockram both take an a-la-carte approach to providing services. “We can provide complete bundled services—from site location through design, construction and finally commissioning and validation—or unbundle to meet a client’s specific requirements for a project,” said Mike Pierce, President of The Austin Company.

“That fits our model quite well”, added Malcolm Batten, Managing Director of Cockram Construction. “Cockram has built these very complex projects globally by being a resource to our clients.  We provide planning, preconstruction, and construction services both as a contractor and secondment services provider.  We match up quite well with Austin’s true partnering philosophy when it comes to serving clients.”

Bio/pharma projects often have speed-to-market drivers, and Austin and Cockram have the experience to quickly mobilize for fast-track— sometimes even flash-track—projects.  For example, Austin and Cockram are partnering with a client to rapidly convert an existing facility into a manufacturing space to produce a COVID vaccine. Concurrently, Austin and Cockram are teamed to build a new multistory modular aseptic processing facility at a pharmaceutical plant in Portage, Michigan, expanding the site initially constructed by Austin in the 1940s.

“Austin and Cockram are looking forward to continuing our partnership by bringing bio/pharmaceutical manufacturing and research facilities back to North America,” says Pierce.

About The Austin Company (theaustin.com) is a 142-year-old design-builder providing design, engineering, and construction solutions for pharmaceutical, biotech, laboratory, and medical device facilities since the 1940s.

Austin understands that pharmaceutical and biotech R&D and manufacturing facilities each have their own specific requirements and needs. We utilize state-of-the-art methodologies and practices to design and build these facilities to meet the latest U.S. and international GMP requirements and the client’s objectives most efficiently and cost-effectively.

From biological, chemical and equipment labs, to “scale up” and manufacturing facilities, Austin has the experience and in-house expertise to successfully deliver even the most complex projects.

About Cockram Construction (cockram.com) offers a range of specialist skills and proven expertise in the areas of project management, design management, construction management, building contracting services, and project controls.

A heritage of over 160 years is augmented by a commitment to excellence and to achieving the highest possible standards of professional competence and innovation in the development and application of project methods and techniques. Our people are selected based on their capabilities and experience and are supported by effective management systems and resources. From this highly resourced platform, we are able to provide tailored project services and systems to meet your individual requirements. While we are substantial operators in the niche market of complex pharmaceutical, laboratory and medical/health facilities for the past 27 years, we bring the same professional approach to every environment in which we work.

From our Australian HQ in Melbourne, we have expanded into the international arena with successfully completed projects in China, India, Malaysia, Dubai, USA and Puerto Rico.